Richard Stengel, a former Time editor who became the State Department’s undersecretary for public diplomacy, writes that he was once an information “idealist.” He believed that in the marketplace of ideas, the truth would ultimately prevail. Not anymore. “I think we all now know that this is a pipe dream,” writes Stengel in a disturbing memoir of his three years ...

If the UK parliament can’t clean up the Brexit mess, it might be time for Europe to start spending instead. The economic impact of a worst-case no-deal Brexit on the rest of the European Union is estimated to amount to $250 billion by 2030, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Back in 2017, Ireland suggested that was a good ...

Days after a mass shooting at one of Walmart Inc.’s stores in El Paso last month, the nation’s largest retailer offered a cautious and decorous response. CEO Doug McMillon offered prayers for the families of those affected and pledged the company would be “thoughtful” about how it responded. Now, a month later, the CEO’s thoughts have morphed into company policy ...

As the 1970s came to a close, I sensed that double-digit rates of inflation were about to turn to disinflation, or smaller and smaller overall price increases. Given the close correlation between inflation and yields on US Treasury securities, I forecast in 1981 a dramatic decline in the 30-year yield from what was then 14.7% to 3% and stated, “We’re ...

Two MIT economists have come out with a big, bold plan for reviving US economic growth. Done right, it just might work. Slowing growth creates a lot of problems. It engenders despair by making people less likely to be richer than their parents. It might exacerbate wealth inequality. It creates a zero-sum world where people must fight over a smaller ...

Fearing market disruptions, both the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Federal Reserve will most likely take more stimulus measures this month regardless of what their analyses tell them about the potential impact on the economy and financial assets. That has implications for both future economic prosperity and medium-term financial stability, and it adds to the to-do list for policy makers ...

Looking at the way major economies in recent years have managed to combine chaotic politics with decent growth, it’s tempting to wonder whether we’re all making too much fuss about the behavior of the people in power. In the US, President Donald Trump has joked about becoming president for life, toyed with overturning the constitution by executive fiat, and used ...

Bloomberg US stock-index futures climbed with equities in Asia as traders weighed a series of fresh stimulus moves expected from the world’s central banks. Shares fluctuated in Europe, where bonds slipped alongside Treasuries. Contracts on the three main US stock gauges advanced after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell gave his last speech before the next policy meeting and cemented views ...

Bloomberg Mainland Chinese stocks are outperforming their offshore-listed peers as domestic investors bet the country’s economy will withstand the trade war with the US. The Shanghai Composite Index has rallied more than 21 percent this year, compared with a 4.3 percent advance by the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index in Hong Kong. The Shanghai measure is trading near its highest ...

Bloomberg British Airways scrapped almost all of its timetable for the next two days as pilots went on strike for the first time in decades in a labour dispute that could cost the carrier 80 million pounds ($98 million). The unit of IAG SA had “no option” but to cancel almost 100 percent of services amid the action over pay, ...